Ronald Bryan "Bo" Ginn, (May 31, 1934 – January 6, 2005) was an American politician who represented Georgia's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1973 to 1983.

Ginn was born in Morgan, Georgia and attended Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia from 1951 through 1953 and Georgia Southern College in Statesboro where he earned a degree in 1956.

He was considered a champion baseball player as a youth, but was stricken by crippling polio as a teenager and was told he would never walk again. Surgery, long months of therapy at the Warm Springs Foundation, and a strong determination allowed him to leave his wheelchair. This experience and the encouragement from others ultimately led him to a career in public service.

Ginn served as administrative assistant to U.S. Senator Herman Talmadge and U.S. Congressman George Elliott Hagan. He successfully ran against Hagan as a Democrat to win the 1st District congressional seat in 1972 to the 93rd United States Congress. He served five consecutive terms in that seat before stepping down to run for Governor of Georgia in 1982.

Political career

Ginn went to Washington in 1961 as chief aide to U.S. Rep. G. Elliott Hagan, and then served as the chief aide to U.S. Senator Herman E. Talmadge. In 1971, Ginn returned to Georgia to resume a career in business and to explore the prospect of running for Congress. He was elected in 1972, and served five consecutive terms representing the First District, encompassing 20 counties in the southeast section of the state, including all of the Georgia coast.

Ginn's wife Gloria died in 1998; Ginn was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2003 and succumbed to the disease on January 6, 2005. He was survived by three children, and seven grandchildren.

References

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